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Friday, March 29, 2013

Samaira has a yoga session every week. I take her to this 1:1
yoga session where she practices with her teacher while I sit on the side mat
and observe both of them. It is typically an hour long session and I, for no
reason at all, am smiling for about 80% of that session. Really, for absolutely
no reason. Something about this hour just makes me smile.

It is kind of funny how Samaira’s yoga session centers me
and brings me into a zen mode.

When I go to Samaira’s day care to pick her up at the end of
the day, she gives me the BIGGEST smile ever and waves vigorously at me. That
makes me smile.

The thing that has changed over the last few weeks, however,
is that Samaira’s toothless smiles have been replaced by her central & now
lateral incisor filled smiles. My sister told me only recently, that when her
babies had toothless smiles, she used to often wonder what their teeth-filled
smiles would be like. Honestly, the thought of Samaira’s smile changing never
occurred to me until my sister said this to me. It finally became a reality now that she actually has a
couple of teeth coming out! And boy is it different. She has a different smile
now!

I really miss her toothless smiles. And that made me nostalgic
about the last 15.5 months with Samaira. What else have I taken for granted
that will change over time, and that I will miss later on? I wish I could
capture it all and preserve it for later. Maybe I should take more photos &
videos. We are not a camera handy family. As in, we don’t always have camera
ready to capture the everyday precious moments of life. Maybe I should make an
effort to be more camera-ready and capture it all! While I am having this monologue,
I am internally resolving to capture more of Samaira’s childhood. I think, for
me though, a first step would be to experience
Samaira’s childhood in a little bit of a more be-in-the-moment state (can’t think of a
better word). I feel like in the hustle-bustle of life and work, I sometimes
forget to just experience things as they are.

Ok, so here is a resolution. How about
I just try to be more present when I am with Samaira and try to experience all
that she is? Once I do that, I will graduate to capturing it all
as well. I feel pretty good about my new resolution! Obviously, it is easier
said than done!

But at least it is a happy thought for a Friday, and that makes
me smile J.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Today, March 21st, is a celebration day. March 21st
= 3/21 = 3 copies of the 21st Chromosome. It is the World Down
Syndrome Day and we wouldn't have known about it if it weren't for Samaira. Today
is the day we celebrate the value, acceptance and inclusion of people with Down
syndrome. So I woke up this morning and clapped, with Samaira.

Some facts about Down syndrome - it occurs in one in every
691 live births. Individuals with Down syndrome have 47 chromosomes instead of
the usual 46. It is the most frequently occurring chromosomal disorder. Down
syndrome is not related to race, nationality, religion or socioeconomic status.
The most important fact to know about individuals with Down syndrome is that
they are more like others than they are different.

Some facts about Samaira – she is now 15 months old and she
totally rocks our world, sometime literally. At first I thought she is this
super innocent looking child who can do no wrong. Now she has started giving me
this attitude and I feel like I am getting to know a new her. Sometimes I wonder
if this is what 15 month age group is like, then what happens during teenage years! She tends
to be really moody sometimes. She likes eggs one day and not the next day. And now
we have a dozen eggs sitting at home with only Siddharth left to finish them as
I don’t eat eggs! She has become very stubborn about her choices off late. In a
lot of ways, she reminds me of me. Eeek. That’s scary. But she has still maintained
her mischievous grin that could melt my heart, no matter what she has done. The
one thing that she teaches me every day is to clap. Every time she thinks she
has done something cool – she claps. Every time she thinks someone else has done
something cool – she claps. If she sees someone else clapping she has the look
of “clap it like you mean it”. So now
I clap. I clap to celebrate every little thing, especially with Samaira. She
has taught me to use the pause button in
life, to enjoy and celebrate every little victory and every little achievement.

So here’s to celebrating today. Here’s to peace and love on
this special day. Just because.

If you are ever curious or have any questions – do let me
know! Changing outdated perceptions starts with open conversations with those
around us.

Monday, March 11, 2013

A month is a long time to be away from home. We spent this
last month vacationing. We spent the first half of the vacation with my in-laws
and the second half in India with my folks.

Time flies when you are having fun and loving life and that’s
exactly what happened in India! It was a combination of ALL my favorite people –
Maa, Daddy, Bro, Sis & fly., and of course the Husband and the Daughter. It
was so much goodness packed in so little time that I am left craving for more. I
am now missing all the laughter, jokes, arguments, discussions, crying,
yelling, dancing, singing, eating, sleeping, gossiping, shopping, you name it!

My nieces, P & A,
are the most amazing little girls I have ever witnessed. This was the first
time they were meeting Sam. I absolutely loved how they interacted with
Samaira. P being the oldest one
wanted to play the big sister and assumed the role so beautifully. She kept
telling everyone “since I am the big
sister, I have to take care of Samaira. She is my responsibility.” P & A
kept singing for Samaira till they were totally rhymed out. A being the younger one knew she wasn’t
big enough to hold Samaira, but was definitely interested in singing to her and
playing with her. Some of these moments are captured in my memory ever since
and make me smile every so often, especially when I am by myself. I was even
more fascinated to see Samaira respond very positively to my nieces. Samaira smiled
every time she looked at them and wondered at them with curiosity.

Now that we are back, I am dreaming about the next time all
my girls will get together!